Multi-cell rechargeable batteries are utilized in a variety of applications given their higher voltage delivery and greater capacity. Such applications include, but are not limited to, electronic devices such as laptops, cellular phones, personal digital assistants, and the like. Certain types of battery cells, e.g., lithium ion cells, can be hazardous if charged significantly above its normal charge range or discharged below its normal charge range. As such, a typical monitoring and protection circuit may utilize a switch network to transfer voltage charges to a capacitor. Voltage on the capacitor then represents the battery cell voltage and may then be provided to a plurality of comparators for comparing the voltage to various threshold levels such as over voltage and under voltage levels.
There are several drawbacks to such an arrangement. First, such an arrangement may provide for unreliable voltage measurements. For instance, if the current through a particular cell is not constant or the cell voltage fluctuates because of the internal resistance of the cell or some other factors, the sampled voltage may not be truly indicative of the voltage on the cell. As such, corrective measures may be incorrectly taken based on such erroneous measurements.
Second, the threshold levels such as over voltage and under voltage are not easily adjustable. This is an issue since different battery pack types and different manufacturers for the same battery pack type may require different over and under voltage thresholds. For example, one battery pack manufacture may require a 3.0 volt under voltage threshold while another may require 2.5 volts for the same battery pack type. Third, when the cells in one battery pack are unbalanced (e.g., after many charging and discharging cycles) a traditional bleeding method can be undertaken to balance the cell. However, a bleeding decision is typically made only when the battery is near fully charged at the time of charging. Since bleeding current is typically limited in order to avoid excessive heat generation, bleeding takes a certain time interval. If more than one cell needs to be bled, there is simply not enough time in one charge cycle to accomplish this task.
Accordingly, there is a need in the art for a cell monitoring and balancing circuit that overcomes these and other deficiencies in the prior art.